walleye fishing

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Late October Nip Trip

I had planned to go on my very first moose hunt this year.  Sadly due to some injuries sustained by some of the group members, the plan kinda fizzled out. I needed a consolation trip and happily jumped at the opportunity to fish Lake Nippissing with my Uncle instead.

The trip was a bit of gamble.  Neither my Uncle or I had experience fishing walleye in the fall on Lake Nippissing.  Not to mention the weather can be pretty shifty up there in October so we weren’t even guaranteed a full trip on the water.

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Fishing had definitely slowed down more than normal and the number of walleye caught were severely diminished from the summer time.  Fish didn’t seem to be stacked up on shoals or on structure making them much harder to target with worm harnesses. We toyed with the idea of switching to cranks but on a lake the size of Nippissing this can be a risky move as there is so much ground to cover.

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Thankfully we managed one walleye in the slot.  1 for 30 Isnt a bad ratio especially if you have conservation in mind.

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Walleye Tacos with a chili lime mayo is one of the finest ways to enjoy freshly caught walleye.

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Cheers from the Lake!

Albert

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A Golden Early Season Goose Hunt

Here in southern Ontario we are lucky enough to have an over abundance of Canadian Geese.  Although many people consider these large birds to be a nuisance, Hunters know these birds make for some exciting heart pumping hunts, not to mention delicious table fare.  It was for these reasons I decided to head out last weekend with a group of friends to a small back lake north of Kingston.

Unfortunately, as it is with all new hobbies, proficiency depends directly on experience and in some cases, trial and error.   So as it was this time around,  our trip to a back lake north of Kingston, did not yield any geese.   Looks like more tinkering with our set up and maybe a day or two shooting skeet is required.

Regardless, we had loads of fun shooting at the odd solo bird.  As a bonus were able to switch over to fishing to continue the fun once the goose hunting hours dwindled.

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Fishing started slow, just like goose hunting, however it began to pick up as Dave caught a meatly little largemouth.

Our approach mostly consisted of senkos and drop shots near rock points and rip rap shores which is standard fall basin tactics here in Southern Ontario.  An when the third member of our group hooked up with a hefty fish we were sure the method had paid off with a giant bucket.  We were in for quite a big surprise when he landed this beautiful golden walleye instead of a largemouth.  And on a senko of all things!  In most cases, this would be just a fluke, but when a second walleye came on the senko minutes later, we decided to give it some credence.

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This shook up everything we thought we knew about walleye fishing and we scrambled frantically to figure out this new pattern.

In the end, the pattern didn’t really revolve so much around the lure, but lure placement.  We managed several other decent fish with two well within the slot.  Knowing that the lake seemed to have a decent population remaining, we kept two of the fish that were in the slot for the table and headed back our of the lake towards the car.

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Most walleye anglers have a preferred recipe for cooking walleye.  Although I have tried numerous recipes, I am no different from most as I always come back to the classics.  A flour, salt and pepper dredging and a light fried in butter has always been my favourite way to cook walleye and was the recipe of choice for the fish we kept from this outing.

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The complaint I hear most often from people who don’t like fish is that it tastes or smells too “fishy”.  Why does it taste this way? Well, to put it bluntly, your tasting the initial stages of decay in the fish and that means the fish is not as fresh as the supermarket advertisements would have you believe.

Real wild caught walleye (and most other fish for that matter), prepared properly and ate relatively quickly after it was caught, is a true thing of beauty.  The taste is often described as sweet and has a light and flakey texture.  No fish taste, no fish smell.  Fish the way it was meant to be ate.  Even though I was craving goose, fresh walleye is definitely an allowable substitute.

Cheers from the Wild

Albert

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Early Summer Walleye on the BoQ

After the trip up to the French River I felt like chasing some more Gold around, and one of the best places to do that in Southern Ontario is the Bay of Quinte.  So I loaded up the Green Machine and hopped on the 401 headed towards Deseronto.

The morning crisp and pristine and the roads were vacant.  In my opinion, one of the best parts of fishing is the calmness and serenity you get to experience when you get up at 5 am and hit the road towards your destination. Nothing quite like it.  Not only does the early bird get the worm, but also a nice sunrise to boot!
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With the sun at may back I was on my way.

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on the way to the water I stopped and picked up my Dad and Brother.  Both were eager to get out on the water to try to search for the elusive eyes.

We started off fishing 9 to 14 FOW at the Mouth of the Napanee River to no avail.  Plenty of boats in this area and we were feeling a bit crowded.  With that we left and head down long reach to the Hogs back and Further on to Hay Bay.

Aside from perch, we weren’t having much luck until my brother connects with a hefty fish on one of our troll lines.  Using a crank bait, he was sure it was a healthy Walleye.  No such luck though as he quickly found out when a decent largemouth came towards the boat.  My brother worked diligently to de-hook while snapped a couple shots and the fish was released.  We promptly left the area and headed south down long reach.

We made it to a favourite spot of mine where I had caught my personal best last year and proceeded with another troll line.  Sure enough, the spot lived up to its reputation and produced this somewhat elongated Walleye.  Still a nice fish by any standards.

 

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My spot produced a few more strikes and a fairly hefty pike that was about 30″ in length.

Mid day approached and we decided we had all gotten enough sun for one day, so we packed up and  boated back to the launch.

The numbers were huge but the trip was still enjoyable.

It always is when your out with family.

Cheers from the Wild

Albert

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Bay of Quinte Gold – January 18, 2014

The Bay of Quinte is a Mecca for Walleye fisherman.   Blessed with proximity to Lake Ontario, fairly eutrophic conditions, and several rivers feeding into it, you couldn’t ask for better fish habitat.  Its for these reasons why fisherman flock to the Bay during the winter months to take advantage of the spectacular runs of giant Lake Ontario walleye which are cuing up for early spring spawning.

And so, armed with this information, and an insatiable desire for big walleyes,  I joined the ranks of eager fisherman who have tackled the hard water on the BoQ.

The day started with an early 4:15 am drive to Belleville, with an initial stop at the bait shop (Pro Tackle).  After a quick chat with the knowledgeable owners, I was making my way down Sydney Street to a point along Dundas Street where I would be meeting two of my uncles and three good buddies as well as several members of the Ontario Out of Doors, online fishing forum (here comes the shameless plug! – http://www.oodmag.com/community/).  Several of the members of this forum had arranged for a meet and greet that day at a spot near Potters Creek in Belleville.  I have got to say, fishing enthusiasts are some of the nicest folks out there and a couple of these guys really put a lot of effort into coordinating the event and making the rounds on the ice to introduce themselves and take pictures.  Heck there were even prizes to be won and a big fish contest!  A chance to win swag and fish all day?  Who doesn’t love that.

Being the first of our group to arrive at the meeting point, I spent a bit of time chatting with some of the early risers until finally, the anticipation of some big Bay of Quinte Gold got the better of me and I headed out.

I was set up around 5:45 and fishing hard in 15 FOW.  There was 12″ or more of ice in every hole I drilled which made me thankful for my awesome Finbore auger.  My approach included jigging a shad rap and a set line tipped with a minnow several feet away.  Within in minutes of start up I had a fish take hold of my line and make a run for the bottom.  After a valiant effort fighting the fish to the hole, he finalized realized that something was up and decided to let go of the bait.  More fish activity came and went on the finder however nothing was iced.  That is until the rest of my group arrived……

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The first fish came on my friend Dave’s line.  It was a healthy fish with some pretty good girth and length.  Not to mention this was Dave’s personal best!

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The second fish was caught by my uncle, and it tipped the scales at around 8lbs.  What a tank!

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Some times the Bay of Quinte can be tough and can send you home scratching your head with not even a hint of fish.  Other times, she is generous and gives up some of her golden treasure from the depths.  Some times, if your lucky, she’ll even allow you the chance to see some of the giants that lurk below.   Then there are times like last weekend were you not only catch big walleye but your given a shot at something special.  Now catching a gar pike is a pretty rare experience, but as far as I know, catching one through the ice is almost un heard of.

And so it was my other uncle hooked this massive 43″ beast and wrestled it through the hole.

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I am pretty sure this fish made his day if not week!

The fish was promptly released to be caught another day.

Although the Bay of Quinte can be tough for catching numbers, its pretty hard to beat the size of fish it produces each year.  So if your looking for a trophy walleye, or if your an avid Gar pike fisherman, pack your gear and  hit up the Bay this winter.

Cheers from the Wild

Albert

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Lake Nippissing – Walleye Success

As promised, here is a report on my recent trip to the Great body of water known as Lake Nippissing.

The Lake: Lake Nippissing meaning “big water” in the Algonquin Language

-Surface Area: 873 sq. Km

-Average depth: 15ft

-contains over 40 species of fish including the popular walleye, pike, bass and musky

– some to countless island s and shoals making for some amazing fish habitat

The Report:

We left Bethany around 9:00 am and head North towards a weekend full of fishing.  We arrived at Promised Land Camp around 11:30 and proceeded to unload our gear.  After a hurried bout of unpacking we jumped in the boat and headed out on the beautiful south arm of Nippissing to warm up with some big pike.

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Unfortunately, the pike weren’t cooperating and we knew it was time for a change.  So we picked up a friend from his dock, changed out our pike gear for light lines and headed out to big water to chase some Lake Nippissing Walleyes.

Although the MNR reports that the walleye populations are statistically seeing a decline, the decline was not apparent during our stay here.  The minute we hit the big water and dropped our lines we were catching fish.  Fish were generally caught while trolling in and around the multiple shoals dotting the lake in depths ranging from 40 to 20 FOW.  All said and done, we caught 23 walleye in the afternoon of the first day, 27 walleye during the morning of the second day and 23 walleye during the morning of the third day.  Not to mention multiple smallmouth bass and perch caught incidentially.  Although these numbers are encouraging, the more exciting thing to see was the variety in sizes.  The fish caught seemed to be evenly distributed throughout the year classes with several fish well into the slot size.  We estimated the largest fish weighed between 3 and 3.5 lbs.

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The other interesting thing is where they were caught and the time of year.  Typically walleye start to progress near river mouths during the fall months in preparation for spawning.  Seeing as how we caught these fish near deep shoals, this could be indicative of a healthy shoal spawning strain of walleye in the lake.

Of the 75 fish caught, only 4 were kept.  The remainder were released as part of a conscious decision made to benefit the fishery.  My thought is I want to be able to take my children to fish the Nip in the future and have them experience the same success.  In my mind, the only way to directly accomplish this is to practice conservation and actively advocate for the lake. For those interested in learning more about Lake Nippissing Walleye, see the attached link:

http://www.mnr.gov.on.ca/stdprodconsume/groups/lr/@mnr/@letsfish/documents/document/stdprod_098192.pdf

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But enough of fishing philosophy.  Back to the report.

We spent a few more attempts trying to locate the big pike that inhabit Lake Nip but succeeded in catching only a few medium sized fish.  Still some pike is better than no pike! (sorry no pics, weather was too lousy to break out the camera)

An additional high point of the trip was the stellar accommodations provided by Promised Land Camp.  The cottages were clean, orderly and very comfortable.  Not to mention the hosts were very helpful and super friendly.  This marks my third trip to Promised Land Camp and honestly, I cant think of a single reason why I would try anywhere else.

I like to give credit where credit is due, so when I have a good experience at a place I make a point to promote it.  If your thinking of a trip to the Nip, here’s a tip: give Promised Land Camp a serious look.

http://www.promisedlandcamp.net/

Cheers From the Wild

Albert

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Crotch Lake & Tumblehome Lodge

Most avid anglers have a list of places they would love to fish.  I am no different and Crotch has held a spot on my list for a while.  Partly because it is local but also because Ive heard the walleye fishing here is pretty good.  Till now I have never been able to venture out on Crotch but when a friend of mine named me his best man and wanted me to throw a modest outdoor bachelor party I started looking closer at Crotch Lake.  Finally, after much research I decided we would stay at Tumblehome lodge, which is located at the southern tip of Crotch Lake.

That’s a lot of Crotches right? Alright, go ahead, get all of the crotch jokes out of your system before reading further.

Done?

Great, because although the fishing was average when compared to walleye powerhouses like lake Nippissing or Bay of Quinte, it was a dynamite weekend for the area and deserves a serious report.

To prepare for the weekends festivities, I took Friday off and hit the road at 8:30, heading north towards a weekend of fishing and most likely drunken debauchery.  They guys were starting to call the weekend “Sausage Fest at Crotch Lake” and they were looking forward to some heavy drinking.  I just hoped we would at least get some fishing in between the beer and harassment of the groom.

So I Loaded my car with a ridiculous amount of beer and hopes for catching fish and I arrived at Crotch lake an hour and 45 minutes later.

For those of you who don’t know, the most direct route to Crotch lake from Kingston is to take highway 38 through Verona, turn left onto highway 7 and then turn again onto Highway 509.  Take a left onto Ardoch Road, and 15 minutes later you will arrive.

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Although there is a launch at the North end of the Lake, the best access point is by Far Tumblehome Lodge located at the southern tip.  The folks here know the Lake very well and are great to deal with.  Not to mention, Tumblehome Lodge has some of the best accommodations around with the best prices!  I can assure you, staying here will give you the best bang for your buck.

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Now to the fishing.  Crotch lake is approximately 3,850 Acres in size with 55 miles of shoreline.  Lake depths extend up to 100 ft and the majority of the lake is 20 + ft deep.  Crotch lake has very little weed growth due to its sharp sloped rocky shores and hard rock bottom.  This translates into a lot less Largemouth bass and a lot more Smallmouth.

We started by tackling the bass population in the lake which included testing out the few weedbeds we encountered and hitting the rocky shores and drop-offs with jigs and crank baits.  Mediocre success was had with a few largemouths caught every trip and about double the amount of smallmouths.  The odd Pike fell to our tactics as well.  Although the numbers weren’t huge, we did catch some decent size fish.  We even saw a few guys with a 4lb 7oz beast as we were coming off the lake.

The wind continued to be a problem throughout the weekend as the wind direction was perfectly inline with the lake’s fetch.  Thankfully it was nothing the green machine couldn’t handle.

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With our bass appetite sated, it was time to chase some gold around the lake.  Catching the smallmouth had been a “first” for the groom and he was looking to add another “first” to his repertoire by catching a walleye.  Our attempts to catch walleye included pitching jigs, trolling spinner baits and running bottom bouncers at depths between 18 and 40 ft.  All of these techniques produced fish, however, I caution the use of bottom bouncers due to the large amount of boulders and rocks littering the lake bottom.  You will loose tackle on this lake with this method!  We had pretty good success for Walleye and the numbers remained consistent with 2 to 3 walleye caught every time we ventured out for a fish.  Not to mention the odd incidental smallmouth.  Fish measured between 15 and 18 inches landing a few squarely in the slot size (15.7 to 19.5inches).  We did witness a larger 3+ lb beast caught by another angler when we returned from one of the morning runs.

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Look at the colour on these fish!

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(A face only a mother could love!)

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Dinner!

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I am sure those of you who are dedicated walleye fisherman are probably laughing at these sizes and weights I am posting.  Even though they are not huge, I ask you to think about the sizes compared to walleye fishing in the general area.  Walleye are a hard species to come by near Kingston and they are heavily fished across southern Ontario.  Not to mention this was my first time fishing this lake.  All things considered, the trip was a success.

We certainly enjoyed the fishing on Crotch, not to mention the quality accommodations and delicious beer.

I am sure the bachelor party/fishing trip will not soon be forgotten.

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Cheers from the Wild

Albert

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Bay of Quinte Report

This weekend found me fishing my old stomping grounds: the Bay of Quinte.  Together with my dad and another gent, we launched at the Deseronto boat launch  around 7:00 am.  Winds from the previous day were lingering which left a good “walleye chop” on the water.  In addition the sky was overcast and periods of drizzle were common.  This seemed like a perfect day for catching walters!

From the launch we travelled past foresters island and headed for Catalaque Shoal where we dropped the trolling motor and proceeded to troll.  Bottom bouncers and spinners were our go to lures that day however the action was slow to start with only perch and white bass caught.  We criss-crossed the lake fishing in everything from 18 to 40 FOW.  Again only perch and white bass seemed to be interested.

Being a firm believer in “If it aint working, try something else” we decided to try a troll line of the eastern shore line where there was a definitive drop.  Trolling in everything from 17 to 24 FOW we started getting lots of hits and proceeded to land several nice sized drum.  One we estimated to be around 13 Lbs.  We tucked in even closer to the shore line to find a submerged weedbed where we caught a couple decent sized largemouths.  As an added bonus we even caught a walleye while on the out side of the weedline.

All in all a decent day on the water.

 

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My apologies for such crummy photography work.  I left my DSLR at home as the weather was predicted to be pretty lousy.

Ah well, low quality fish pics are better than none at all right?

 

Cheers from the Wild

Albert